


The Secretary

by rosegardenpicker (cherrylockeddoor)



Category: The Lorax (2012)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Romance, Eventual Smut?, Fluff, Other, Verbal Abuse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:35:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27188743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherrylockeddoor/pseuds/rosegardenpicker
Summary: She was fired in a fit of rage. The old secretary. There wasn’t a very good reason, simply that he wasn’t content with her work to begin with, and got angry and just... Fired her.That’s what the rumors told you. That and that he was a merciless man, full of greed and hatred. No secretary had lasted very long with him. No one who worked for him lasted very long. No human could measure up to him, and he reigned above all in his eyes. You couldn’t help but be nervous because of it.
Relationships: The Greed-ler (The Lorax)/You, The Greed-ler/Reader, The Once-ler/Reader, The Once-ler/You
Comments: 10
Kudos: 55





	1. The Latte

She was fired in a fit of rage. The old secretary. There wasn’t a very good reason, simply that he wasn’t content with her work to begin with, and got angry and just... Fired her. 

That’s what the rumors told you. That and that he was a merciless man, full of greed and hatred. No secretary had lasted very long with him. No one who worked for him lasted very long. No human could measure up to him, and he reigned above all in his eyes. You couldn’t help but be nervous because of it.

But this was the job your employer gave you. You were hired to replace the Once-ler’s last secretary. Most of the time the people who are sent to work for him are the more experienced workers as the Once-ler only demanded the best out of everything. Which is what you are. You’ve been working for this company for a little over a year. You’ve always been involved with secretary work, you have years of experience working with several big companies and law firms. But when the company sends you to work for the Once-ler, they’re giving you a death wish.

You’ve always had a terrible relationship with your company’s boss. He’d always try to find reasons to fire you, put obstacles in your way, harass you. He made life hell for you, but you were good at your job, so there was never a good reason to fire you. So this is his last take, the final battle, and you knew it.

You began work the following Monday. You were given a cozy desk in front of what you could only assume was the Once-ler’s office. It had large wooden double doors framed by a curly, elegant finishing that was painted a beautiful deep emerald green. The rest of the place was fantastically decorated, you couldn’t help but be in awe of it. 

Before you were given a brief tour of the place by his mother, she showed you the basics, said some rules, and assigned you some work on the Once-ler’s behalf. You were put to work on organizing some schedules, paperwork, and perform some mundane tasks. His family (who seemed to liter the place) enjoyed using you as a punching bag so far, never missing a beat for an insult or to simply be condescending. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the first time you dealt with people like them, so you tried your best to ignore it. 

A few hours into your work, and when the family finally dashed away into their own little corners of the building, you were left in a long silent hallway with only the music of your keyboard. Then came a door, and a shadow hastily approached. It’s assured footsteps echoed.

“Patricia, I hope you’ve gotten my latte already. It’s Monday. You know the drill by now.”

You suddenly stand up, adjusting your skirt. 

“Good morning Mr. Once-ler.” You said.

He strides past you, going directly to his office door, not taking any time to even glance in your direction.

“There are no good mornings without lattes Patricia,” he said sternly as he struggles to unlock his office doors.

“I can certainly get you a latte but I would just like to say-“

“Great no latte. Fantastic start to my day," he said under his breath as he forced another key into the keyhole.

“Sir, I don’t mean to interrupt but-“

“Well, you certainly are interrupting me. I asked for a latte, not a good morning,” he kept playing with the lock, this time more aggressively.

“Sir.”

“What!”  He finally dropped his hands to his side and gave you a stern look and then a confused one.

“Wait, you’re not Patricia. Where’s Patricia?”

“You fired her sir, remember? I’m her replacement. It’s what I was trying-“

He put his hand up in front of him. 

“Spare me the details. Your job now is to make sure I get a half-caff, sugar-free, soy latte with an extra shot, at 120 degrees at exactly 9:00 am every Monday. And since your new” -he looked at his wrist- “I’ll give you till 9:10 to get me one today.” He gave you a smile then rolled his eyes before entering his office and closing the door.

You checked the time at the bottom of your computer screen. 9:05.

* * *

The week of work was gruesome. Tons of paperwork, organizing, reorganizing, scheduling, reorganization again, lattes, cleaning, anything, you name it. You felt overworked and tired by the end of it. Not to mention everyone always trying to rip away your dignity.

Friday came around slowly, and you had been finishing up some paperwork the Once-ler had told you to finish by the end of the day. Until his mother appeared.  She seemed to just be causally grazing around and you greeted her briefly before getting back to work. She didn’t seem to enjoy that very much.

She pretended to sneeze into a handkerchief which she let fall out of her hand, landing on the velvet floor. You paid no attention to it, or to his mother in general, focusing on your work.

“Oh, it seems that I have dropped my handkerchief on the floor," she said sheepishly.

You glance up and give her a nod and smile but got right back to work. Certainly, she doesn’t assume you’re there to pick up her dirty things.

She pretends to clear her throat. You give her no response. She tries again. No response.

“Excuse me!” She exclaimed.

You finally look up from your computer to see the woman trying to tower over you. 

“Ma’am?” 

“Well! Are you not going to pick it up?”

You glance over her shoulder at the dirty cloth behind her. She can’t be serious.

“I’m sorry?”

“The handkerchief. It’s your job to pick it up!”

You could only stare at her in disbelief. You scoffed,  “I’m sorry but I actually work for Mr. Once-ler doing paperwork, scheduling, and taking calls. That’s my job. Not being your maid.”

Her eyes widened and filled with rage. It didn’t take long before the rest of her body did too.

“Pick it up right now!' she demanded.

“I’m sorry ma’am. That’s not my job. I can call up a janitor if you’d like.”

“I don’t want the janitor! I want YOU to pick it up!”

You shook your head,  “Sorry ma’am, but no.”

The Once-leer could hear the distraught screams of his mother from inside his office. Not too long after she barged in, holding you by your collar as she threw you in, nearly making you fall.

She was screaming and kicking like a toddler, demanding that you get fired. He quickly came to her from his desk.

He was trying to calm her down, to get her to stop throwing a tantrum in the middle of his office. She was quite the actress, she even started crying.  


He gave you a look, “You. Stay here," he said before taking his crying mom out of the room, leaving you alone in his office.

You just sat on a red cushioned bench near the door and patiently waited on your fate. You don’t regret standing up to the Once-ler’s own mother, but you’re certainly going to lose your job over it. 

Until then you studied his office. It was huge and just as elegantly decorated as the rest of the building. Red carpeted stairs led to a large desk at the top. While tall glass windows covered three full sides of the entire room. They gave you a view of the city, Thneedville. It currently housed only a couple hundred people for now but plans are set to house more than 400,000 people. From all the paperwork you’ve done, you knew that there was so much more he had planned. Plans to bigger the company, bigger the revenue, bigger the manufacturing, bigger, well, everything imaginable! The Once-ler never came off as a small-minded person, to say the least.

Speaking of the devil, he barged back in, his footsteps echoing on the checkered tile floor in his office where you sat. He walked right past you, heading straight towards his desk.

A voice a reason came to your head, telling you to fix this. Maybe apologize. Unfortunately from what you heard the Once-leer was not a very understanding man, but you knew you had to at least try and explain yourself.

“Mr. Once-ler, I can explain-”

“I suggest you don’t," h e said as he sat down at his desk.  “Instead of making my mother cry why don’t you go off and find me something to eat hmm?” he recommended as he glanced at you and then back at his work.

You were left speechless, standing in front of his desk at the bottom of his stairs. You turned to leave but not before muttering something under your breath.

“A please would be nice.”

“What was that?” the Once-ler snapped.

You became paralyzed in your place. Your mouth just formed the words before your brain had a chance to catch up. But you spoke up.

“I said,” you started as you turned back to face him, “that a please would be nice.”

That thin ice that you were on? Yeah, you feel through. You could tell by how quickly the Once-ler came to berate you straight to your face.

“Listen, I’ll only say this once. You work for me. I pay YOUR company so that they can pay YOU so that YOU can work for ME. I don’t take shit from people who work for me. So no, I won’t say please because I don’t have to and I don’t pay you to make me say please, " he hissed.

Emotions were never involved in your professional life for the sake of, well, professionalism. But for the first time, now they have. You felt out of place because of it, like the only human in the room.

“You know what you are Mr. Once-ler?" you began.

“What?” he growled.

“You’re a despicable human being. All you care about is yourself. You think you’re above everyone else but you know in reality that without this building, this office, your clothes, your money, you are nothing. Nothing but a lonely shell of a man. That no one likes.”

He stares hard at your face, clenching his jaw. He’s silent for a few moments as he thinks of the words he wants to say. 

“Well. I’m glad you think I’m such a terrible human being. Fortunately for you, I already know that.”

You were taken back by his statement, it wasn’t the response you were expecting. He left you standing in place when he turned around and slowly walked to the windows on the left side of his office. There was silence as you only stumbled over finding a way to respond.

“I don’t pay you to tell me what I am or not either. And I advise you that if you want to keep your job you should refrain from making comments like that.”

He knew you were right, and as much as the Once-ler tried to hide his emotions you could tell that this got to him. He wiped his hand down his face, still staring at his city. You continued to stand there in silence, expecting a man to start crumbling right in front of you.

“I suggest you get out of my office,” he sighed.

You tried to reach out to him,  “I didn’t- I didn’t mean-“ 

“Get out of my office,” he asserted.

You want to fix this, “Wait, sir.”

“I said fuck off!” he screamed over his shoulder.

You hurried out of his office but paused at the door. You glanced back at his silhouette in front of the city. A man who apparently had everything, looked like he had nothing.

You left without another word, returning to your desk.

* * *

The weekend seemed to breeze by and Monday rolled back around. By the time you arrived the Once-ler was already closed off in his office. With that you tried to put yourself to work, completing some usual paperwork. But the work didn’t help with your racing mind. You couldn’t stop thinking about what happened. Turning over everything he said in your mind, over and over. You finally broke off from work, leaving your desk for a couple of minutes.

When you returned you pressed a button to speak to him. 

“Mr. Once-ler?”

A brief moment of silence-  “Yes?” his voice replied.

“May I enter your office?” 

You could hear him thinking for a few moments before he replied.

“Alright.”

You entered, holding a warm cup of coffee in your hands. You saw the Once-leer sitting at his desk with large piles of paperwork. He had stripped down to just his white blouse, tie, and pants by now. His hand was covering his forehead as he tiredly wrote something down.

“It’s Monday,” you said walking up the velvet stairs to his desk. 

He didn’t look up until you were standing next to him. He quickly glanced at the cup of coffee, then you, before taking it in his hands.  He took a sip, starting to get back into his work before becoming disgusted, spitting back his coffee into the cup. He shoved it back into your hands.

“This latte tastes like shit!” he complained while rubbing his tongue on the roof of his mouth in repulse. “I don’t know why you insist on bringing me a latte anyways, I don’t have time for this and you clearly couldn’t even make it right.”  
  
You made it the same exact way you made them every Monday. To think you actually felt bad about what you said, but he never fails to remind you why you said it to begin with.

You threw the cup in the trash can next to him, and threw your hands up, catching his attention from his desk. 

“I don’t even understand why I try anyway. Clearly, nothing I do is ever good enough for you,” you contended.

He was not very amused by your outburst, “No, clearly not, " he said sternly.

“If you hate me so much why don’t you just fire me?”

“Is this why you came in here? To discuss this? If so, now’s not the time,” he said.

“Mr. Once-ler. Fire me.”

You put your arms on the side of the desk, leaning over his paperwork. You had grown tired of the abuse, you didn’t even care anymore, you just wanted it to be over. His eyes went to your hands and followed up your arm to your face. You could see the pressure build-up in his head.

“No.”

“Why not?” you responded.

“I said I’m not talking about this right now.”

“I’m not leaving this room until you fire me.”

“I’m not going to fire you.”

”Then why?”

He finally stood up from his chair, “Because you’re a good worker!” he yelled. 

Your faces were inches away from each other, the tension grew but quickly disappeared as you both realized what he said. He fell back into his chair, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“I haven’t fired you because you’re a good worker.” He could barely look you in eye as he said it.

He began loosening up his tie, untying it and letting it lay around his neck. 

“You’re a pretty decent secretary. Probably the best I've had. But it’s a waste that you have to work for someone like me.” He confessed.

You relaxed, turning around to sit on the edge of his desk, scoffing, not knowing what to say.

“So no. I’m not going to fire you, unfortunately,” he paused, tapping his foot, “But I won’t stop you from quitting.”

You perked up, turning to look at him only to find he was already looking at you. 

“I’m sorry sir.” You began. “But I don’t quit on my employers.”

“Right.”

He stood up from his chair, taking the tie off his neck and handing it to you. The businessman stuffed his untucked shirt back into his pants and wiped some imaginary dust off his chest. You went ahead and folded his tie and placed it on a corner of his desk.

“Well um, go ahead and clear my schedule for the rest of the week.” He said as hurried down the steps.

“Yes sir.”

He stopped at the double doors before relaxing his shoulders. “I think I need a long vacation. Clearly, the stress of work is getting to me.” 

He opened the door and started to leave but not before stopping and saying: “You can take the week off too if you’d like. I won’t be needing you for now.”

You smiled and nodded your head, “Sure thing Mr. Once-ler.”


	2. Closed Doors

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something told you that he was better than that, he just needed some guidance, and time. Something was drawing you towards him, like a normal force people have when they want to get to know someone better. You meet a stranger, and you think the best of them. You hope the best of them. But it’s hard to see the best in someone like the Once-ler. 
> 
> Maybe he’s just misunderstood.
> 
> Or maybe he’s just a greedy man, undeserving of your attention. You couldn’t help but pity him. A sad stranger in need of help? In need of someone?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was surprised by the hand full of people who wanted more out of this. With that being said I’m writing out more chapters as we speak, so stay tuned and enjoy Chapter II.

After the train wreck that was your first week, the Once-ler was kind enough to offer you the following week off while he went on vacation. A simple apology would’ve been enough but you don’t think it’s even possible for the Once-leer to apologize. So you settled and took the vacation.

You arrive early the following Monday. Having time to clear your head, you went straight into your work. Not too long after the Once-ler arrived _quietly_ , almost trying to avoid you. You pretended not to see him but smiled at your computer.

“Good morning Mr. Once-ler.”

You seemed to have startled the Once-ler as he nearly dropped his keys.

“Oh, uh- Yes. Good morning,” he cracked.

He cleared his throat, trying his best not to face you, even though you clearly see him out of the corner of your eye. You continue to stare at your screen, trying to hold in a laugh.

“How was your vacation sir?”

“It was fine.”

You finally stopped to glance at him, you couldn’t resist, he was just acting so... Out of character. Like he was nervous but almost subtle about it. The sweat from his brow gave it away.

He was also wearing his sunglasses. Inside.

“Lots of time to clear your head?”

“You could say that,” he sighed.

He finally unlocked the door, entering his office and closing it without another word.  For the next couple of minutes after you couldn’t help but snicker in confusion to yourself.

* * *

Around 9 AM you arrived at his door, juggling some freshly printed paperwork and a cup of coffee while simultaneously trying to knock on the office door.

“Mr. Once-ler?” you called.

You weren’t given a response. You called out again but was ultimately met with silence, so you opened the door.

You found the Once-ler with his head down on his desk looking a little disgruntled. His keys were still halfway in his hands, and his hat was toppled over on his desk.

“Mr. Once-ler? Mr. Once-ler sir,” you muttered.

His breathing was the only thing that responded. After placing the cup of coffee down, you used your free hand to gently touch his shoulder. He immediately jolted up.

“Jesus!” he exclaimed.

It made you take a step back before he quickly calmed down, seeing it was only you.

“Knocking would’ve been nice.”

“My apologies... I should’ve known better,” you mumbled, rolling your eyes.

He pushed his sunglasses back so that they rested on the top of his head before he rubbed his tired eyes.

“Are you okay Mr. Once-ler?” you asked, concerned.

“Yes, I’m fine. Just,” -he swallowed and turned to you-  “ a little hungover,” he stated quietly.

You could see his eyes told that story, along with the rest of his face.

“Maybe a latte would help sir.”

He gave you a small smile while his eyes burned. You handed him the cup which he gladly took.

“A latte sounds perfect,” he exhaled taking a long sip. 

You waited for a reaction but he just sighed, leaning his body onto his desk, using the coffee in his hand to prop up his face while he shut his eyes. He just sat there for a couple of moments, trying to distract himself from a headache.

“Is there anything you’d like me to do to help sir? Maybe some medicine or something proper to eat?”

He shook his head, “No, I’ll be alright. I just need a dark and quiet place,” he replied.

“Would you like me to reschedule your meetings for today?”

“If you don’t mind. I rather not be having my investors see me like this. Or you.”

Well, it’s too late to not see it. This was not necessarily a side of the Once-ler you were ever expecting to see but certainly not a surprising one. You’d imagine someone like the Once-ler would find himself drinking a little too much at some extravagant yacht party at some point.

“I’m not paid to judge your personal life, sir.”

“Wow, really? It’s too bad you already have.” There was sarcasm in his tone.

You didn’t know how to reply to that. The statement caught you by surprise. You thought after the conclusion that what happened before was already forgotten and forgiven. But something tells you he didn’t forget, and that he didn’t actually take a vacation to relax.

“Just go ahead and leave my office so I don’t have to think about it again.”

You did what you were told and without hesitation. Who knew a man like him could be so fragile.

* * *

  
The rest of the day disappointed you. You sat by while the Once-ler seemed to wallow in angst and self-pity in his office. You couldn’t help but feel like this is would be a never-ending cycle.

The Once-ler gets angry at you, you get emotional, have an outburst, he retaliates but doesn’t fire you. Wash, rinse, repeat. 

Sometimes you wish you weren’t so emotional, then maybe it would make your work life easier. You put yourself back to work but was struggling to stay focused, even though you were able to stand up to not only his mother but to him about how to be treated he still manages to make you feel like you’re nothing to him. Barely a human.

Something told you that he was better than that, he just needed some guidance and time. Something was drawing you towards him. Like the force people have when they want to get to know someone better. You meet a stranger, and you think the best of them. You hope the best of them. But it’s hard to see the best in someone like the Once-ler. 

Maybe he’s just misunderstood.

Or maybe he’s just a greedy man, undeserving of your attention. You couldn’t help but pity him. A sad stranger in need of help? In need of someone?

You shake your head, being friends with your boss is not part of your job. You drop the subject.  It was time for you to leave the office anyway. Getting up to leave you stop, staring back at his green doors, hoping that maybe they’ll open for you someday.

* * *

You laid in bed that night, thinking. Your head was heavy with thoughts about him. 

_ If he is such a cruel man, why did he say I was a good worker?  _ You thought to yourself. It was only a week that you worked there, yet, the Once-ler seemed to have determined that you, out of all people, was his best secretary. You knew you were good at your job but not enough to notice in the first week.

_ Why did he go through the effort just to tell me something like that? _

It itched your mind for hours, and no reasoning seemed to have scratched a good conclusion. The next couple of hours were spent tossing and turning until eventually, you fell asleep.

* * *

The rest of the week went without a hiccup. For most of it, the Once-ler just avoided you, leaving you with mostly busywork rather than anything productive. You only wondered why. What was he hiding?

Friday morning came around, you greeted him politely when he arrived as normal. He greeted you back skipping most of the small talk, until he stopped, right before closing the door.

“(Name),” he said.

You were surprised he even knew your name, he never asked for it.

“Yes sir?”

“Would you like to get some drinks with me?”

You looked at your watch, “It’s 9 AM sir.”

He squeezed his eyes shut, putting his face in his palm, “Not now (Name). I meant like, after work.”

_Drinks? After work? Like? Casually?_ You looked down at your keyboard and pondered. Why would he ask you to do something so interpersonal with him? You wondered if this was against a secret professional code.

“Directly after work?” you asked.

“If that’s what works best for your schedule.”

You gleamed, giving him a nod. 

“Great.” 

He escaped into his office, leaving you a little flustered at your desk, trying to process what you agreed to.

Did you just agree to a date with your boss?

**Author's Note:**

> I can’t believe I wrote an not only an x Reader but a Once-ler x Reader in this cursed year of 2020. If you enjoyed this, thank you. Let me know and I’ll post another chapter tbh. If you didn’t enjoy this, I understand lmao.


End file.
